Santa Fe International Film Festival

RULES AND GUIDELINES FOR 2025 SUBMISSIONS

The following is an explanation of the Rules and Guidelines governing film submissions to the 2025 Santa Fe International Film Festival. Compliance with these Rules and Guidelines is necessary in order to participate in the Film Festival. Submission of a film implies unconditional acceptance of the Rules & Guidelines, therefore, please carefully read through the Rules prior to submitting your film. If you have any questions, please contact the Santa Fe International Film Festival: contact@santafe.film or 505-397-0371.

1. The Santa Fe International Film Festival accepts submissions for films in the following categories:

Features Films: Narrative, Animated, Documentary, Experimental, Indigenous, Student, New Mexico, and International.
Shorts Films (under 40 minutes): Narrative, Animated, Documentary, Experimental, Indigenous, Student, New Mexico, and International.

2. The Entrant/s submitting the film must hold all legal rights for the submission, as well as all necessary clearances for public exhibition.

3. The Filmmaker/s retain/s all submission and intellectual property rights.

4. To be eligible, your film must not have played in person or online in the state of New Mexico, USA. Please contact SFiFF office with any questions.

5. Films must be submitted electronically via FilmFreeway.

6. The Filmmaker/s is/are responsible for making sure all submission materials are submitted by the submission deadline indicated. If your film does not arrive or is not uploaded by the deadline for which you have registered, you may be required to pay the higher submission fee or withdrawn.

7. Each submission must be accompanied by the appropriate fee. Submission fees are in are U.S. Dollars per submission and is non-refundable. Cash is not accepted.

8. If a film received 50% or more of its funding from sources outside of the United States, the film may be submitted as an International Film.

9. Subtitles must be in English.

10. Please keep screener links and passwords up-to-date and notify the SFiFF office promptly with any changes. Please test your media prior to submission to make sure they run properly and are not damaged.

11. Filmmakers are allowed to submit more than one film for the Festival provided that each film is submitted separately and meet SFiFF guidelines.

12. Filmmakers are allowed to re-submit a film that was previously submitted provided significant changes were made and all eligibility requirements are met. When re-submitting the film, include a brief letter detailing the changes made.

13. A student submitting a film must provide a photocopy of a current and valid student ID or a letter from his/her school verifying enrollment.

14. If you would like your materials returned after the festival, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

15. Entrants may contact the SFiFF to find out if the Festival received the submission: contact@santafe.film or (505) 397-0371. Filmmakers submitting through FilmFreeway can check their status through the website.

16. The Filmmaker is responsible for all inbound shipping costs, domestic or international.

17. All personal contact information is to remain confidential and not to be shared with any third parties.

18. SFiFF reserves the right to use images from films selected in the Festival for marketing purposes.

19. All decisions regarding award winners are considered final and incontestable.

20. All films submitted must have been completed between September 2023 and July 2025.

21. Applicants acknowledge that SFiFF reserves the right to change the nature of screenings and events due to circumstances related to public health and welfare or at the direction of local, state, or federal authorities. In such cases, no submission refunds shall be issued.

22. As an Academy Award® Qualifying Festival, SFiFF provides access to the following qualifying and eligibility rules: https://www.oscars.org/oscars/rules-eligibility